Planning the Campus

We read that Princeton’s new campus plan (University supplement, mailed with the Feb. 7 issue) has been “multi-dimensional,” that it “develops a mission-centered vision,” and that it seeks “a climate that encourages thoughtful and creative approaches to sustainability.” That’s undoubtedly reassuring to people who know what those words mean. The rest of us, especially those who fell in love with Princeton because it was a small and beautiful place, may not relish the prospect of an enormously expanded university — one with multiple campuses, “campus connectors,” hundreds more students, and new residential colleges. The country has plenty of sprawling universities already.